‘Forever young’: heroic teenager Shay is laid to rest
THE 15-year-old boy who died trying to save the life of his friend in a double drowning tragedy “had the heart of a warrior”.
Hundreds of mourners gathered at St Peter and Paul Cathedral in Ennis, Co Clare, yesterday to say goodbye to Shay Moloney (15) – just a day after the funeral Mass for his friend Jack Kenneally (15) was held there.
Addressing mourners, among them scores of Junior Cert pupils who will start their exams tomorrow, Fr Ger Fitzgerald said Shay “had the heart of a warrior”.
Shay and Jack were both born in January 2003 and were friends since attending Holy Family National School in Ennis. They have been described as “brothers in arms” and were both keen rugby players at Ennis RFC.
Paying tribute to Shay, his uncle Louie Moloney said the family “are completely heartbroken” that Shay is not around to enjoy the warm tributes from the rugby world.
“There have been touching tributes in recent days from the IRFU, and Irish rugby teams wearing black arm bands while playing, and messages of support from professional rugby players that would simply have lit up Shay’s world. Shay would have been in his element, the centre of attention,” he said.
“Shay’s personality had that X factor where everyone left him feeling special due to his roguish and outgoing personality.
“We were so proud of Shay and the person he had become. He had recently sprouted into a young man with all the qualities to take on the world – the world was at his feet with the great family support that Shay had.
“Shay crammed more into his 15 years than most do in a lifetime. Shay was a character in every sense of the word, with a bubbly personality and a cheeky grin for everyone.”
Mr Moloney said there was “more than a hint of divilment” in his nephew’s grin and he had blue eyes that “could light up the world”.
“Shay was loved by those who met him. His circle of friends was immense. He had a happy personality that was contagious and he had a way of dealing with people of all ages and they were always falling for his charms.”
Mr Moloney added: “Shay, sleep the long sleep. Always remember that your mammy loves you more than life and your family loves you more than life. Sleep peaceful now, Shay. Forever young. Forever our little warrior.”
In his tribute, Fr Fitzgerald recalled meeting Shay during his confirmation year in a classroom at Holy Family School.
“Shay had not the slightest bit of interest in what I was saying and instead was ripping up a piece of paper to put on a ruler,” he recalled.
Fr Fitzgerald said Shay fired the piece of paper with the ruler but didn’t hit the intended target of a classmate and “hit me on the head instead”.
“He looked at me with his extraordinary smile, almost laughing at me and said ‘Sorry about that, Father’”.
Later that year when Shay was about to be anointed with confirmation oil, Shay quipped to Fr Fitzgerald: “Will this mess up my hair?”
Fr Fitzgerald said the tragedy of Shay and Jack’s deaths “has no words – it is
horrible and awful and our hearts are ripped apart”.
Addressing the hundreds of teenagers, Fr Fitzgerald said: “It is OK not to be OK and I would encourage you to hold your head high like Shay would. Look after one another like Shay would and mind one another like Shay would and help one another like Shay would. Feel courageous like Shay was and love life like Shay did.”